Apparatus for indicating the direction of the wind.



G. T. RICHARDSON. APPARATUS FOR INDIGATING THE DIRECTION OF THE WIND.

APPLICATION FILED DBG.15,1911. 1,1 17,901 Patented Nov. 17, 1914.

, 4 SHEETSSHEBT 2.

g i2" ass 8 Inventor G. T. RICHARDSON. APPARATUS FOR INDIGATING THE DIRECTION OF THE WIND.

APPLICATION FILED DEO.15.1911.

Patented Nov. 17, 1914.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3 [m/en [or G. T. RICHARDSON.

APPARATUS FOR INDIOATING THE DIRECTION OF THE WIND. APPLICATION FILED DEO.15, 1911.

1,117,907,, Patented Nov. 17, 1914.

4 SHEBTSSHEET 4.

fizz/velar To all iolzomtitaaay a I Be it known that I, Gnome THoMas Rwy: a A1znsoN, a subject of the Kingnf. Great Br t at 18 Brownlow street, ,Lon-; don, W. 0., England, haveinvented a new' ain, residingand useful Improved A'paratus for Indieating the Direction oft e Wind, of which .r -the following is specification.

.My nventmn relates to anv improved 3pparejtus'foly ndicating the directlonof e 1 Wm convenient construction connected to; ap paratus for indicatin by means oi. an electrica illuminated; 'al the precise d1rection panying drawings in which- Fi re 1 shows in front elevation the mdicatmgdial, dial plate andcasing. Fig. 2

.1 wiring for the electric lamps.-

shows a vane suitable for the purpose in view. Fig. 3 shows on an enlarged scale and in sectional elevation the commutator device construction of the dial, and 8- is'a die v gram of connections. Referring first to Fig. 1,'the dialplate 1s incased in a wooden or other suitable casing 1 preferably in the manner shown, in which-the spacesQ, 3, 4, 5, 6 are available for ornament or for advertising purposes; The dial comprises the central part 7 ,"preferahly iecorated with an ornparaantali pattern as hown in the drawin and the sixteen peripheral: divisions 8: inscribed with the points of the compass. points are preferably indicated by perforated or out out lettering in metal, and are divided one from another li ht-tight in the manner hereinafter more ll set forth. The front of the dial is glaze to prevent the access of dust. Within the casing 31 is fixed the stationary commutator 9 (shown in sectional elevation in Fig. 3 and in plan view in Fig. 4) around which the casing can revolve. Above the commutator is the vertical columnlO having attached to it at its upper end the head piece 11, through which passes the horizonta bar 12 connected to the wind vane 13. Underneath the head means of an internally screw threaded ports the vanes and the column. by means of a vane of any usual or 1' nc i-"i's o the wind from moment to moment.

My invention is illustrated in the'accomrespective lamp, enda central return insulated and conducted centrally; through the strand cable into which. all the respective wires of the circuit showing the.

.. to use partments and take currentffrom the ordiwhich These compass;

; e heathen rrangemen Patented 173 t an ma mammals, 1e1.1. -s ena1nt. ses,oe4'. ii

H I. iii-ablat dthtetiih'. port'141which. the hollowpillar passes, downward through. and thecommutator 9 and is en ported below In. any convenient manner suc supported by the brackets supporting thecommutator (Fig. 3).. At the top of the; part 14 is laced a steel cup 15 and ball 16 upon. whic rests the, plate 17 which sup as by. collar.

this

constWQtion the .ininimum frictional 're-w'l columnaby t e actior of thewind onthe vane 13, I There is connected to the cover which makes electric. contact-by means of posed to the vturning'of the a 7'1 1 31 thespr1ng arm 18.w1th contact roller 19..

the contact strips 20 (Fig. 5) with one wire of a 1am placed in one of the compartments of the d al. There are sixteen contact strips in. the commutator, each connected to itswire 21 are combined.

A further advantage of that byinsertingthe lamps which serve to illuminate thev compartments 3, 4, 5, 6, in.

a series in the general. circuit-J.- make use of them as resistances, endami thus enabled lowfvoltage lamps'in the dial comnary electric. supply'ndispensing with the use of a newal. For *mstance in zthe' construction" shownin the drawings, assuming a 200 volt'service, I compartments 3, 4, 5,-6 a volt lamp and in each, indicator; compartment, a 4i .volt; lamp. In this case each of the fuming lamps will. consume-eawolts; and the f lamps-volts.

The compartments of the dial are insulated hght-tight from one another in the mom ner shown in Fig. 7. Each com artment 22 is provided with a strip of dar soft material such as velvet along its upper edge 23 over which there is a velvet or other strip 24 insuring that each compartment is absos lutely light-tight with regard to the adjacent ones.

The glass covers of the dial compartments shown 1n sectionat 25 (Fig. 7 are supported by bent metal plates 26 as own.

e operation of the apparatus is as follows: e motion of the vane turns the col- N my apparatus 15 separate battery or accumulator, is expensive and needsperiodical re-' may employ in each of the umn 10 and casing 31 mounted thereon. and

this'moves the arm 18 fixed to the casing, es-

tablishing the electric circuit through one or other of the lamp connections on the commutator. The current accordingly flows through the circuit including the lamps servin'g as'resistances and the respective lamp and illuminates that dial section which indicates the precise direction of the Wind. If the wind changes to the extent of a single point or more,

the motion of the vane instantly changes the indication on the dial to ;the corresponding compartment, and thus even variable Winds are continuously and certainly visibly indicated by the instant appearance of the illuminated corresponding sign. 7 a: The precise circuits may be traced in Fig. 8, which is extremely diagrammatic, for example, the casing 1 is shown diagrammatically in elevation, while the commutator and barscarrying the wires 20 are shown dia :ygrammatically in plan. The wires between each segment A B C of the commutator to the lamps A B C lampsand the terminals at 0 are not shown in detail. Samples are shown connecting up the three segments'A B O with the three lamps A B O, and the three terminals a b o. The remaining segments, lamps and terminals are Connected up similarly, that is to say, from any segment one wire epasses to the lamp bearing the corresponding reference character, and a second wire 35 passes from that lamp to the terminal with the corresponding reference character. It will be seen as follows that the lamps in the ecompartments 3, 4:, 5, 6 are always illuminated from the mains in series with one of 40 the lamps A B C, which corresponds to the direction of the wind at any particular instant. Taking as an example the position cehown in the diagram Fig. 8 when the roller 19 carried by the moving arm 18 is in conto tact with the commutator segment 0' the circuit is main through wire 50, through the lamp in acompartment 3, the lamp in compartment 4:,

. and between the as followsz-from the positive the lamp in compartment 6, the Lani-p in compartment 5, through the return wire 21, which in reality is embodied in the cable containing all the wires-from the bars carrying the wires '20; thence the circuit passes through arm 18, roller 19, commutator segment 0', wire 51, lamp 0, wire 52, terminal 0, connecting wire 20, through the cable 53 by the return wire 5% to the negative main.

When the roller 19 moves on to another seg ment it is obvious that a similar circuit will be closed, the only difierence being that instead 'ofthe lamp 0 another lamp around the dial will be illuminated in accordance with the segment upon which the roller 19 rests.

The apparatus may of course be combined with a recording device for marking permanently each change in the direction of the wind. Such devices are assumed to be well known and are therefore not furthe' de-.

tions, lamps illuminating said additional illuminated signs, electric supply mains, a Wind vane and a circuit maker operated by said wind vane to connect the lamps illuminating the additional signs permanently across said supply mains inseries with the one lamp illuminating that indication of the point of the compass to which said wind vane is pointing. 4 Y

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification inthe presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE THOMAS RICHARDSON.

Witnesses:

F. T. READ, L. Gore.- 

